Mississippi

See which Mississippi high school earned the highest ranking from U.S. News list

Published

2 years ago

April 29, 2024

See which Mississippi high school earned the highest ranking from U.S. News list

For the second year in a row, Madison Central High School in Madison County ranked within the top 10 on the U.S. News Best High Schools list for the state of Mississippi.

The list studied data from nearly 18,000 public high schools in the nation, including traditional, magnet and charter public schools. The rankings are based on six different factors including graduation rate, college readiness and state assessment scores.

Nationally, the highest ranked Mississippi school is Ocean Springs High School, which earned a No. 682 national ranking.

Ocean Springs High School is the only Mississippi school in 2024 to break 1,000 on the rankings list. The next highest school, Lewisburg High School in Olive Branch, ranked 1,464.

Several other southern states broke the top 100 nationally. Alabama had one school at No. 21 nationally; Louisiana had one school at No. 49 and one school at No. 89; Tennessee had one school at No. 19 and one school at No. 48; Georgia had one school at No. 9.

The Mississippi coastal schools won out this year, earning five spots out of the state’s top 10.

Madison Central High makes top 10

Madison Central High ranked 10 on the 2024 list, the only Jackson Metro area school to break the top 10 in best high schools in Mississippi.

This ranking falls short of last year’s ranking by one; Madison Central held ninth place on the 2023 list.

In comparison to neighboring public schools, Madison Central earned first place in the Jackson Metro area.

Overall, Madison Central High School ranked No. 2,926 in the nation out of the nearly 18,000 ranked.

No Jackson Public Schools broke the top 10 for the Jackson Metro area.

The top 10 public high schools in Mississippi for the U.S. News 2024 list, in order from first place to 10th, are as follows:

Ocean Springs High School, Ocean Springs School District, No. 682 nationally
Lewisburg High School, Desoto County School District, No. 1,464 nationally
Hernando High School, Desoto County School District, No. 1,964 nationally
Pass Christian High School, Pass Christian Public School District, No. 2,028 nationally
Raleigh High School, Smith County School District, No. 2,034 nationally
Petal High School, Petal School District, No. 2,346 nationally
West Harrison High School, Harrison County School District, No. 2,678 nationally
Biloxi High School, Biloxi Public School District, No. 2,789 nationally
Long Beach Senior High School, Long Beach School District, No. 2,906 nationally
Madison Central High School, Madison County School District, No. 2,926 nationally

Compare to last year: See how Jackson area and state schools ranked in U.S. News and World Report rankings

Top 10 high schools in the Jackson Metro

The Jackson Metro area refers to the capital city and its surrounding counties, including Hinds, Madison, Rankin and Copiah among others.

Here are the top 10 schools in the Jackson Metro area, according to the U.S. News 2024 list, in order from first place to 10th:

Madison Central High School, Madison County School District, No. 10 in state, No. 2,926 nationally
Germantown High School, Madison County School District, No. 14 in state, No. 3,658 nationally
Brandon High School, Rankin County School District, No. 30 in state, No. 5,140 nationally
Clinton High School, Clinton Public School District, No. 32 in state, No. 5,337 nationally
Raymond High School, Hinds County School District, No. 37 in state, No. 5,885 nationally
Pearl High School, Pearl Public School District, No. 38 in state, No. 5,923 nationally
Northwest Rankin High School, Rankin County School District, No. 45 in state, No. 6,385 nationally
Terry High School, Hinds County School District, No. 72 in state, No. 8,527 nationally
McLaurin Attendance Center, Rankin County School District, No. 77 in state, No. 8,759 nationally
Wesson Attendance Center, Copiah County School District, No. 79 in state, No. 8,779 nationally

More in education news: Belhaven is first MS university to pair with Amazon for new curriculum. Read details here

Top high schools by district

Here are some top public schools in Jackson and Madison County by school district.

Jackson Public School District:

Some schools within the Jackson Public School District received a ranking between two values rather than a specific number placing.

Murrah High School, No. 104 in state, No. 10,321 nationally
Callaway High School, No. 106 in state, No. 10,354 nationally
Jim Hill High School, No. 118 in state, No. 10,854 nationally
Forest Hill High School, No. 142-229 in state, No. 13,242-17655 nationally
Lanier High School, No. 142-229 in state, No. 13,242-17655 nationally
Provine High School, No. 142-229 in state, No. 13,242-17655 nationally
Wingfield High School, No. 142-229 in state, No. 13,242-17655 nationally

In Dec. 2023, the Jackson Public School District voted to permanently close Wingfield High School, along with 10 other schools, when the current school year concludes.

More on Wingfield’s closure: Wingfield football coach, players describe the pain of learning of their school’s closing

Madison County School District:

Madison Central High School, No. 10 in state, No. 2,926 nationally
Germantown High School, No. 14 in state, No. 3,658 nationally
Ridgeland High School, No. 83 in state, No. 9,043 nationally
Velma Jackson High School, No. 117 in state, No. 10,847 nationally

Hattiesburg and its surrounding districts:

Lamar County School District, which covers schools in Hattiesburg and surrounding cities, had four schools ranked as follows:

Oak Grove High School, No. 15 in state, No. 3,667 nationally
Sumrall High School, No. 46 in state, No. 6,427 nationally
Lumberton High School, No. 99 in state, No. 9,959 nationally
Purvis High School, No. 109 in state, No. 10,491 nationally

The only Hattiesburg Public School District school ranked by the U.S. News for 2024 is Hattiesburg High School, which came in at No. 53 in the state and No. 6,828 nationally.

Forrest County School District also had one school ranked. North Forrest High School ranked No. 66 in the state and No. 7,949 nationally.

Neighboring district Petal School District also had only one school ranked, Petal High School, which earned 6th place in the state’s top 10 and ranked No. 2,346 nationally.

Got a news tip? Contact Mary Boyte at mboyte@jackson.gannett.com

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Mississippi

These restaurants, schools, in, near, Jackson fail December health inspections

Published

9 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Press Room

These restaurants, schools, in, near, Jackson fail December health inspections

Four food service facilities in the Jackson area received failing health inspection grades in December 2025.
Common violations cited were inadequate hand-washing facilities and unclean food-contact surfaces.
As of early January, three of the four locations had corrected their violations and passed follow-up inspections.

In the Jackson area, four restaurants and food service facilities received failing health inspection grades in December 2025, according to the Mississippi State Department of Health.

As of Jan. 5, three of the four facilities have conducted follow-up inspections and rectified the failing grade.

Below are the restaurants and food-service facilities in District V, which includes Hinds, Madison and Rankin counties, that received a failing grade of “C.”

Hinds County

Powell Middle School, temporarily housed in the former Brinkley Middle School located at 3535 Albemarle Road in Jackson, received a failing grade during a scheduled inspection on Dec. 10. In 2023, Brinkley Middle School was consolidated into Lanier High School. Powell Middle School then moved into the former Brinkley building while the school is being renovated. The inspection notes a lack of a certified manager and inadequate hand-washing facilities. The grade was rectified in a follow-up inspection on Dec. 17. Brinkley Middle School previously received one other failing grade in 2021, which was rectified in a follow-up inspection.
Oak Forest Elementary School, located at 1831 Smallwood St. in Jackson, received a failing grade during a scheduled inspection on Dec. 8. The inspection notes inadequate hand-washing facilities and improperly washed hands. As of Jan. 5, Oak Forest Elementary has not conducted a follow-up inspection. The school previously received one other failing grade in 2024, which was rectified during a follow-up inspection.

Madison County

Penn’s Fish House, located at 1859 Main St. in Madison, received a failing grade during an inspection following a complaint on Nov. 18. The restaurant then failed the corrective follow-up on Dec. 1. Penn’s rectified the grade during a second follow-up inspection on Dec. 15. The Nov. 18 inspection notes several violations, including a lack of a certified manager and inadequate hand-washing facilities. The notes also cite violations in food storage and preparation, including unclean food-contact surfaces and improper holding temperatures. By Dec. 1, the restaurant had corrected most of the violations, but still had unclean food contact surfaces, according to the inspection notes. This Penn’s location previously received two failing grades in 2013 and 2021, both of which were rectified during follow-up inspections.

Rankin County

Golden Corral, located at 988 Top St. in Flowood, received a failing grade during an inspection following a complaint on Dec. 12. The inspection notes several violations, including inadequate hand-washing facilities, unclean food contact surfaces and improper food-holding temperatures, date marking and disposition. The restaurant rectified the grade during a follow-up inspection on Dec. 17. In November 2025, this Golden Corral location received a failing grade for several of the same violations listed in the Dec. 12 inspection. The restaurant rectified the November failing grade during a follow-up inspection on Nov. 14. This Golden Corral location previously received a failing grade in 2023, which was then corrected in a follow-up inspection.

Health inspection grading system

The MSDH grades health inspections on an A, B and C scale, with C considered a failing grade.

The MSDH website states the following regarding the grading scale:

A rating: “The facility inspection found no critical violations. Critical violations of the state Food Code are those more likely to lead to food contamination, illness, or other health risk.”
B rating: “Critical violations were found, but corrected under the supervision of the inspecting environmentalist. No further corrective actions are required.”
C rating: “Critical violations were found, but some or all were not corrected during the inspection. The facility will be re-inspected, and all violations must be corrected in a time period not to exceed 10 days. The re-inspection date is posted on the graded report. If violations are not corrected in the specified time, steps are taken to suspend the facility’s permit to operate. A grade of C is also given if critical violations are repeated from the last inspection, even if they were corrected at that time.”

Got a news tip? Contact Mary Boyte at mboyte@jackson.gannett.com

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Mississippi

Mississippi lawmakers to tackle school choice, PERS reform as session begins

Published

21 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) – Mississippi lawmakers will address school choice legislation, PERS reform, and Gulf Coast Restoration Fund distribution when the legislative session begins Tuesday, according to political analyst Frank Corder with the Magnolia Tribune.

School choice

Corder said school choice will likely be the first major issue addressed, with House Speaker Jason White making it one of his main agenda items this session.

School choice policies would let families use public funds to enroll their children in schools outside their assigned local option, including private schools.

“It wouldn’t surprise me if the first week or two, we don’t see a bill dropped and by the end of January, there’s some kind of action on that bill,” said Corder.

The Senate will likely take a more measured approach to school choice legislation, Corder said. Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann has said he supports opening up public-to-public transfers but not necessarily allowing money to follow students from public to private schools.

ALSO READ: Lt. Gov. targets chronic absenteeism, supports limited school choice options

Corder expects Mississippi will pass some form of public-to-public transfer system that allows parents to choose schools outside their assigned district, though he is uncertain whether universal school choice will advance this session.

Gulf Coast Restoration Fund

This session, lawmakers will look at how Gulf Coast Restoration Funds are distributed, Corder said. The fund operates as an advisory body that makes recommendations to the Mississippi Development Authority, which then sends proposals to lawmakers for funding decisions.

Corder said Coast lawmakers have typically been unified in their requests, but when they are not, funding has lagged.

“I do expect them to maybe revamp how things are done this time. If it doesn’t happen, I’ll be surprised,” he said.

ALSO READ: 16 projects recommended for Gulf Coast Restoration Funds

Corder believes focus will shift toward larger, coastwide projects spanning from Jackson County to Hancock County, including infrastructure improvements and coastal restoration projects.

PERS reform

The Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) will also likely receive attention this session.

Corder said lawmakers could consider changes to Tier 5 that would reduce the 35-year work requirement for law enforcement officers and firefighters before retirement.

In March 2025, the state legislature passed House Bill 1, which changed PERS to require 35 years of service for full retirement benefits, regardless of age, starting March 1, 2026.

ALSO READ: Mississippi first responders unite to propose separate state retirement tier

Corder believes lawmakers will also consider injecting resources into PERS to improve its financial stability.

Vote 2026

Corder also weighed in on the midterm elections happening this year. Last week, candidates filed paperwork to qualify.

Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith will face a Republican primary challenge from Sarah Adlakha of the Gulf Coast. Corder said Hyde-Smith has advantages as the incumbent with an established “campaign war chest,” while Adlakha appears to be self-financing her campaign.

ALSO READ: MS candidates file for federal election qualification

In the 4th Congressional District, Rep. Mike Ezell faces challenges from Republican Sawyer Walters. On the Democratic side, State Rep. Jeffery Hulum and two others are running along with one Independent.

“That could be an interesting race to watch,” said Corder.

Rep. Bennie Thompson also has a Democratic challenger, Evan Turnage, who previously served as chief counsel for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Congressional primaries are scheduled for Tuesday, March 10.

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Mississippi

Dallas fugitive arrested in Mississippi

Published

1 day ago

January 5, 2026

Press Room

PORT GIBSON, Miss. (WJTV) – Port Gibson police announced a fugitive wanted out of Dallas, Texas, was arrested in Mississippi. Police said they received credible information that Latavien Manning was in Port Gibson on January 3, 2026. He was wanted for aggravated assault with a firearm and had been on the run for six months. […]

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